Review of Mythic Worlds and the One You Can Believe In

[Shivali Y]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Mythic Worlds and the One You Can Believe In" by Harold Toliver.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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If judging a book by its cover is a sin, then I am guilty. The cover of Mythic Worlds and the One You Can Believe In is rather mystical, enchanting, and conjures up thoughts that we would not usually think. The content of this fascinating book by Harold Toliver certainly lives up to the subconscious expectations set up by the cover, but not in the way I expected. Before reading the book, I was fully prepared to immerse myself in the author’s opinions. But I was not ready for the sheer level of focus that this would require. This non-fiction book delves deep into the exploration, explanation and often criticism of myths that people have perpetuated to, according to the author, bring some level of comfort rather than knowledge. Religion receives the most focus in this regard.

The author has clearly and succinctly stated his opinions with regards to human deception and how it has been imbibed into our lives, group-think, the power of governments and other relevant topics. The book is a collection of ‘topics and historical samples that amount to reflections on myths and illusions,’ as stated by the author himself (Pg 16-17). The book is divided into sections and chapters, such as ‘Myths of the Commonwealth.’ The first section, for example, talks about things that are definitively true (like quarks), hypothetical (number of galaxies), and false. This is quite a strong base concept that the whole book is built around.

One thing that I know is definitively true is that the author has a wealth of knowledge in a wide range of subjects. All the points he puts forth are supported by science and credible sources. The author has cited and made references to various sources, all that connect to and back up his content. This book has certainly broadened and tested the capacity of my intellect. It is a rather technical book, but at no point did I feel as if the author had not put research and thought into what he was presenting. It is also clear that he is extremely passionate about the topics being discussed. The level of effort is admirable, and it brings the book a quality that you do not usually find. Personally, I would love to have Harold Toliver as a teacher.

Be warned, however - if you sit down to read this book, you will probably need Google by your side. I, for one, did not know many of the books or personalities that the author made references to, and needed to search it up to truly understand the point he was trying to make. The author tends to make rather pretentious references and expect all the readers to be familiar with it. For this reason, I feel like the book might have been better off being longer, but with clear explanations for the references, so more people would have been able to glean some knowledge from it. I did not find any errors in it, but there were a few cases in which a missing Oxford comma led to some rather humorous sentences.

The whole idea of this book is to talk about how biases and religions have bought about myths, and it is quite a task to distinguish these from the facts. In this aspect, the book achieves its goal. However, due to the relatively small audience it seems to cater to, I have to reduce a star. I give Mythic Worlds and the One You Can Believe In 3 out of 4 stars. I would strongly recommend it for people who are academically inclined and curious about the effects of myths on our world, or just other people who are sceptics of religion. For younger audiences, religious people or those who are not into non-fiction, I would not recommend this.

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Mythic Worlds and the One You Can Believe In
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[J Edwards]

The fact that this book would require me to search Google for many things makes me want to read it more. I like learning new stuff as I read. Thanks for your good review.

[Neshboy Aburi]

It is fascinating to note that this author has explored the hot topic of religion this deeply. I also note that you hail his vast knowledge on all the matters discussed here so I upload this author. I think I would enjoy reading this book. Thanks .